Twinning Chair Mike Mercurio asked that the link to pictures of the medical mission, courtesy of Danielle Harris, be posted on the blog...
Sent: Sunday, March 11, 2012 3:19 PM
Subject: Sharing Pictures
Hello everyone.
I created a Walgreens account for all of us to access and share pictures from haiti. Go to the website, click on "photo" and sign in. The login information is below.
I created an album and uploaded all of my pictures for each of you to view and save. To save a picture, right click on the picture, click "save as" and save the image to your computer.
Walgreens
Website: http://www.walgreens.com/
Username: haitimission2012@yahoo.com
Password: marbial2012
Danielle
Thursday, March 15, 2012
Medical Mission Article for Milford Mirror
This is a copy of the article written by Valerie Carlson that was published in the Milford Mirror recently...
HAITI AID: ST. MARY PARISH TO SEND SECOND MEDICAL MISSION TO SISTER PARISH IN MARBIAL
MILFORD, CT – Members of the St. Mary Parish Twinning Committee are leading a second medical mission to their sister parish, Ste. Therese, in Marbial, Haiti from March 3 through 10. This mission has an extra charge beyond what the group accomplished during its first mission two years ago.
In addition to providing general medical and surgical services as in 2010, the plan this year is to also provide inoculations for polio, tuberculosis and tetanus – a disease with high mortality and low immunization rates in remote areas like Marbial. The village is about 11 miles from Jacmel, the nearest city. The trip takes approximately 1½ hours in an all-terrain vehicle along a riverbed only accessible only during the January to March dry season.
Doctor Richard J. Garvey, senior attending general surgeon at Bridgeport Hospital, and Mike Mercurio, chairman of the St. Mary Twinning Committee, have been planning the mission for over a year. The committee’s first medical mission to Ste. Therese Parish, which has a population of approximately 75,000, took place in March 2010, just after the January earthquake that devastated the country. The mission planned for 2011 had to be cancelled due to an outbreak of cholera in the country and concerns about bringing the highly-contagious disease back to Connecticut.
“This will be an expanded mission,” Mercurio said. “In addition to all the services we provided two years ago, Dr. Garvey traveled to Haiti early in February to arrange for Haitian health officials responsible for Jacmel and the surrounding areas to provide our team with up to 1,000 doses of the tetanus and other vaccines. This is an extraordinary accomplishment; our liaison, Domond Bertony, who has been assisting medical missions since 1993, said he never seen inoculations provided in a rural area. This will, without a doubt, save many, many lives.”
The medical mission’s primary focus is on providing immunizations to children less than five years old and to women of child-bearing age (15 to 45 years old). The children are susceptible to the infection because they play on the ground and sleep on packed earth floors where they are likely to encounter tetanus. Many women lose their lives during childbirth due to the rudimentary and unsanitary conditions they face, which may include cutting of the umbilical cord with used razors, a piece of broken glass or scissors.
The medical mission, which has the blessing and support of the new pastor of St. Mary Parish, Rev. Aidan N. Donahue, includes nine women and seven men, six of whom speak Creole and some French – the languages of Haiti. In addition to Dr. Garvey and Mercurio, Joan Calendrillo, Director of St. Mary's Pre-School and a member of St. Agnes Parish, will once again be a member of the medical team.
“Although I have been pastor for just shy of two months, I have been impressed by the scope of the work involved in helping the people of Marbial,” Rev. Donahue said. “I am also impressed by the dedication of the team and the generous support of the people of St. Mary. This very worthy outreach project is an excellent example of faithfulness to Matthew 25, the corporal works of mercy.”
[The medical mission’s planned itinerary and more information can be found on the Twinning Committee’s blog at stmaryhaiti.blopspot.com or the parish website at stmarychurchmilford.org under “Ministries”.]
During the first day at Ste. Therese, which will begin with a 6 a.m. Mass, approximately 10 physicians from the St. Mary Twinning Committee mission will identify candidates for surgery. Over the next five days Dr. Garvey will perform about 30 operations, primarily hernia repair surgery, at Klinik Pa Nous in Jacmel.
As during the 2010 visit, a medical clinic will operate on the grounds of Ste. Therese Parish. The group provided approximately 1,500 individuals with medical care, medications, medical supplies and vitamins in 2010 and is prepared for more this year. To support the tetanus immunization campaign, the mission is bringing 50 “Birth Kits” which include sterilizing wipes, a sterile razor blade to cut the umbilical cord, two pieces of twine to tie it, a sheet for the woman giving birth to lie on, and soap. The kits also include a sheet of paper with pictures showing how to use the items.
The group also will provide reading glasses to the parish. In the agricultural economy of the remote Haitian village, many find it difficult to see small seeds as they sow them. Likewise, numerous parishioners make their own clothing as well as garments to sell at weekly markets and threading needles can be difficult.
“We will have an eyeglass station providing 1,250 pairs of reading glasses of a variety of magnifying strengths,” Mercurio said.
The visit will also offer Mercurio and committee member Joan Calendrillo an opportunity to check the status of a clean water initiative, Gift of Water, that the committee launched in 2010. Gift of Water is a not-for-profit water purification program that has been operating primarily in Haiti for over 15 years. The self-sustaining program relies on a very simple, system using two buckets, chlorine tables, filters and activated carbon. It includes initial set-up, establishment and training of a local Water Committee and a local Community Water Technician.
“During the mission we intend to get a first-hand look at some of the 625 water filtration systems that the parishioners of St. Mary and other donors have so generously provided Ste. Therese over the past 18 months,” Mercurio said. These systems provide safe, clean drinking water for approximately 5,000 individuals in the parish.
The ministry’s longer-term objective is to build a clinic on the grounds of Ste. Therese, which would make basic health care available to this community locally, Mercurio noted.
“Their options now are, in the dry season, to either to walk the 11 miles to the Klink Pas Nous, which can take two or three hours for a healthy person, or to try to arrange for the pastor, Rev. Bertrand Dieuvielle, to transport them,” he said. “Father Bertrand, however, is often traveling for several days to one of 14 other remote chapels in the parish, the largest in that diocese. During the rainy season it’s virtually impossible to get to the clinic in Jacmel.”
The St. Mary Twinning Committee forwards a shipment that includes medical supplies (and will include additional birth kits) once a year, generally in April. The shipment is organized through the Parish Twinning Program of the Americas, based in Nashville , TN.
Those who wish to support the St. Mary Twinning Committee’s efforts may write a check to St. Mary Parish with “Haiti ” in the memo line and mail it St. Mary, 72 Gulf St., Milford , CT 06460-4811 .
HAITI AID: ST. MARY PARISH TO SEND SECOND MEDICAL MISSION TO SISTER PARISH IN MARBIAL
MILFORD, CT – Members of the St. Mary Parish Twinning Committee are leading a second medical mission to their sister parish, Ste. Therese, in Marbial, Haiti from March 3 through 10. This mission has an extra charge beyond what the group accomplished during its first mission two years ago.
In addition to providing general medical and surgical services as in 2010, the plan this year is to also provide inoculations for polio, tuberculosis and tetanus – a disease with high mortality and low immunization rates in remote areas like Marbial. The village is about 11 miles from Jacmel, the nearest city. The trip takes approximately 1½ hours in an all-terrain vehicle along a riverbed only accessible only during the January to March dry season.
Doctor Richard J. Garvey, senior attending general surgeon at Bridgeport Hospital, and Mike Mercurio, chairman of the St. Mary Twinning Committee, have been planning the mission for over a year. The committee’s first medical mission to Ste. Therese Parish, which has a population of approximately 75,000, took place in March 2010, just after the January earthquake that devastated the country. The mission planned for 2011 had to be cancelled due to an outbreak of cholera in the country and concerns about bringing the highly-contagious disease back to Connecticut.
“This will be an expanded mission,” Mercurio said. “In addition to all the services we provided two years ago, Dr. Garvey traveled to Haiti early in February to arrange for Haitian health officials responsible for Jacmel and the surrounding areas to provide our team with up to 1,000 doses of the tetanus and other vaccines. This is an extraordinary accomplishment; our liaison, Domond Bertony, who has been assisting medical missions since 1993, said he never seen inoculations provided in a rural area. This will, without a doubt, save many, many lives.”
The medical mission’s primary focus is on providing immunizations to children less than five years old and to women of child-bearing age (15 to 45 years old). The children are susceptible to the infection because they play on the ground and sleep on packed earth floors where they are likely to encounter tetanus. Many women lose their lives during childbirth due to the rudimentary and unsanitary conditions they face, which may include cutting of the umbilical cord with used razors, a piece of broken glass or scissors.
The medical mission, which has the blessing and support of the new pastor of St. Mary Parish, Rev. Aidan N. Donahue, includes nine women and seven men, six of whom speak Creole and some French – the languages of Haiti. In addition to Dr. Garvey and Mercurio, Joan Calendrillo, Director of St. Mary's Pre-School and a member of St. Agnes Parish, will once again be a member of the medical team.
“Although I have been pastor for just shy of two months, I have been impressed by the scope of the work involved in helping the people of Marbial,” Rev. Donahue said. “I am also impressed by the dedication of the team and the generous support of the people of St. Mary. This very worthy outreach project is an excellent example of faithfulness to Matthew 25, the corporal works of mercy.”
[The medical mission’s planned itinerary and more information can be found on the Twinning Committee’s blog at stmaryhaiti.blopspot.com or the parish website at stmarychurchmilford.org under “Ministries”.]
During the first day at Ste. Therese, which will begin with a 6 a.m. Mass, approximately 10 physicians from the St. Mary Twinning Committee mission will identify candidates for surgery. Over the next five days Dr. Garvey will perform about 30 operations, primarily hernia repair surgery, at Klinik Pa Nous in Jacmel.
As during the 2010 visit, a medical clinic will operate on the grounds of Ste. Therese Parish. The group provided approximately 1,500 individuals with medical care, medications, medical supplies and vitamins in 2010 and is prepared for more this year. To support the tetanus immunization campaign, the mission is bringing 50 “Birth Kits” which include sterilizing wipes, a sterile razor blade to cut the umbilical cord, two pieces of twine to tie it, a sheet for the woman giving birth to lie on, and soap. The kits also include a sheet of paper with pictures showing how to use the items.
The group also will provide reading glasses to the parish. In the agricultural economy of the remote Haitian village, many find it difficult to see small seeds as they sow them. Likewise, numerous parishioners make their own clothing as well as garments to sell at weekly markets and threading needles can be difficult.
“We will have an eyeglass station providing 1,250 pairs of reading glasses of a variety of magnifying strengths,” Mercurio said.
The visit will also offer Mercurio and committee member Joan Calendrillo an opportunity to check the status of a clean water initiative, Gift of Water, that the committee launched in 2010. Gift of Water is a not-for-profit water purification program that has been operating primarily in Haiti for over 15 years. The self-sustaining program relies on a very simple, system using two buckets, chlorine tables, filters and activated carbon. It includes initial set-up, establishment and training of a local Water Committee and a local Community Water Technician.
“During the mission we intend to get a first-hand look at some of the 625 water filtration systems that the parishioners of St. Mary and other donors have so generously provided Ste. Therese over the past 18 months,” Mercurio said. These systems provide safe, clean drinking water for approximately 5,000 individuals in the parish.
The ministry’s longer-term objective is to build a clinic on the grounds of Ste. Therese, which would make basic health care available to this community locally, Mercurio noted.
“Their options now are, in the dry season, to either to walk the 11 miles to the Klink Pas Nous, which can take two or three hours for a healthy person, or to try to arrange for the pastor, Rev. Bertrand Dieuvielle, to transport them,” he said. “Father Bertrand, however, is often traveling for several days to one of 14 other remote chapels in the parish, the largest in that diocese. During the rainy season it’s virtually impossible to get to the clinic in Jacmel.”
The St. Mary Twinning Committee forwards a shipment that includes medical supplies (and will include additional birth kits) once a year, generally in April. The shipment is organized through the Parish Twinning Program of the Americas, based in Nashville , TN.
Those who wish to support the St. Mary Twinning Committee’s efforts may write a check to St. Mary Parish with “Haiti ” in the memo line and mail it St. Mary, 72 Gulf St., Milford , CT 06460-4811 .
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
SM Medical Mission Schedule
Below is the Medical Mission Schedule that Chair Mike Mercurio sent to Domo...
Hello Domo,
Please be advised that our medical team will consist of nine woman and seven men. Our anticipated schedule is as follows:
March 3 - Saturday - We will arrive at Port-au-Prince on American Airlines Flight #837 at approximately 2:55 P.M. We will have about 40 pieces of luggage/shipping containers which includes carry-ons. I will rely on your expertise regarding the size and number of vehicles we will require. Please note that this arrival time is one and a half hours later than two years ago; therefore, it is most important that we leave PAP as quickly as possible.
March 4 - Sunday - We will attend the 6 A.M. Mass, have breakfast, and hope to begin setting up at 8 A.M. Our intent is to return to the Rectory around noon for lunch and return to the Convent around 1 P.M. We will work until about 5 P.M. It will be great if dinner could be served between 6:30 and 7 which will allow us a little time to freshen up and discuss the days activities.
March 5 - Monday- First thing Dr. Garvey, Dr. Maxfield and Frantz will have to be taken to the hospital in Jacmel along with those individuals who will have surgery on Monday. The other team members will be at the church treating patients, identifying additional individuals for surgery and hopefully giving the immunizations and the oral polio vaccine Dr. Garvey obtained during his recent visit. At the end of the day the three members of the surgical team will need to be transported to Deacon Hammond's home where they will be staying in the evenings until Friday morning. The remaining thirteen team members will be at the church until sometime on Friday afternoon.
March 6 - Tuesday - Dr. Garvey, Dr. Maxfield, and Frantz will have to be taken back to the hospital. The remainder of the day will be the same as Monday. New patients will have to be taken to the hospital and patients will need to be brought back to the church. The surgical team will need to be brought back to Deacon Hammond's at the end of the day.
March 7 - Wednesday - Same routine as Tuesday
March 8 - Thursday - Same routine as Tuesday
March 9 - Friday - Sometime in the afternoon all 16 team members will have to be returned to PAP where we will be guests of your family.
March 10 - Saturday - We have plenty of time on our hands as our departing AA Flight #896 does not leave until 4:10 P.M. It will be much appreciated if you can provide both breakfast and lunch.
It is my understanding that you, Father Bertrand, and others will provide crowd control. It is our hope that you can provide us an absolute minimum of 5 translators with 6 being preferred. Also, as you know, we are bringing with us 1,250 pairs of basic reading glasses and we are counting on the sisters to operate the Eye Glass Station for us.
Thank you very much, Domo, for your help with our medical mission. We are most excited about returning to Ste. Therese.
Best wishes and God's Blessings,
Mike
Hello Domo,
Please be advised that our medical team will consist of nine woman and seven men. Our anticipated schedule is as follows:
March 3 - Saturday - We will arrive at Port-au-Prince on American Airlines Flight #837 at approximately 2:55 P.M. We will have about 40 pieces of luggage/shipping containers which includes carry-ons. I will rely on your expertise regarding the size and number of vehicles we will require. Please note that this arrival time is one and a half hours later than two years ago; therefore, it is most important that we leave PAP as quickly as possible.
March 4 - Sunday - We will attend the 6 A.M. Mass, have breakfast, and hope to begin setting up at 8 A.M. Our intent is to return to the Rectory around noon for lunch and return to the Convent around 1 P.M. We will work until about 5 P.M. It will be great if dinner could be served between 6:30 and 7 which will allow us a little time to freshen up and discuss the days activities.
March 5 - Monday- First thing Dr. Garvey, Dr. Maxfield and Frantz will have to be taken to the hospital in Jacmel along with those individuals who will have surgery on Monday. The other team members will be at the church treating patients, identifying additional individuals for surgery and hopefully giving the immunizations and the oral polio vaccine Dr. Garvey obtained during his recent visit. At the end of the day the three members of the surgical team will need to be transported to Deacon Hammond's home where they will be staying in the evenings until Friday morning. The remaining thirteen team members will be at the church until sometime on Friday afternoon.
March 6 - Tuesday - Dr. Garvey, Dr. Maxfield, and Frantz will have to be taken back to the hospital. The remainder of the day will be the same as Monday. New patients will have to be taken to the hospital and patients will need to be brought back to the church. The surgical team will need to be brought back to Deacon Hammond's at the end of the day.
March 7 - Wednesday - Same routine as Tuesday
March 8 - Thursday - Same routine as Tuesday
March 9 - Friday - Sometime in the afternoon all 16 team members will have to be returned to PAP where we will be guests of your family.
March 10 - Saturday - We have plenty of time on our hands as our departing AA Flight #896 does not leave until 4:10 P.M. It will be much appreciated if you can provide both breakfast and lunch.
It is my understanding that you, Father Bertrand, and others will provide crowd control. It is our hope that you can provide us an absolute minimum of 5 translators with 6 being preferred. Also, as you know, we are bringing with us 1,250 pairs of basic reading glasses and we are counting on the sisters to operate the Eye Glass Station for us.
Thank you very much, Domo, for your help with our medical mission. We are most excited about returning to Ste. Therese.
Best wishes and God's Blessings,
Mike
Friday, February 17, 2012
Lenten Fundraiser Message to SM Parish
Greetings!
Below is the Lenten Fundraiser message from Chair Mike Mercurio that should be posted in the bulletin soon...
LENTEN FUNDRAISER FOR STE. THERESE
During this Lenten Season we are once again inviting you to consider a donation to provide clean, safe drinking water to those at our Sister Parish, Ste. Therese.
To date, we have provided Ste. Therese with 625 Water Filtration & Chlorination Systems which are serving approximately 5,000 individuals. While we cannot hear their spoken words of gratitude, or feel the warm embrace of a most sincere thank you, we can be comforted to know that over the past eighteen months we, the St. Mary community, have saved many lives and significantly improved the health and well-being of thousands of our Haitian brothers and sisters .
This is truly God's work--we are benefiting the neediest of the needy. Donations of $40 (of course, any amount is appreciated) will purchase one self-sustaining system which serves 8-10 people.
Please make your check payable to St. Mary Church with "Clean Water" noted on the memo line, and place in the collection baskets.
Please remember: We are people of Love and Faith helping people of Love, Faith, and Hope.
Below is the Lenten Fundraiser message from Chair Mike Mercurio that should be posted in the bulletin soon...
LENTEN FUNDRAISER FOR STE. THERESE
During this Lenten Season we are once again inviting you to consider a donation to provide clean, safe drinking water to those at our Sister Parish, Ste. Therese.
To date, we have provided Ste. Therese with 625 Water Filtration & Chlorination Systems which are serving approximately 5,000 individuals. While we cannot hear their spoken words of gratitude, or feel the warm embrace of a most sincere thank you, we can be comforted to know that over the past eighteen months we, the St. Mary community, have saved many lives and significantly improved the health and well-being of thousands of our Haitian brothers and sisters .
This is truly God's work--we are benefiting the neediest of the needy. Donations of $40 (of course, any amount is appreciated) will purchase one self-sustaining system which serves 8-10 people.
Please make your check payable to St. Mary Church with "Clean Water" noted on the memo line, and place in the collection baskets.
Please remember: We are people of Love and Faith helping people of Love, Faith, and Hope.
Thursday, February 9, 2012
St Mary Returns to Ste. Therese!
Greetings!
Below is an article that our Chair Mike Mercurio has submitted for the bulletin.
--------------------------------------
ST. MARY RETURNS TO STE. THERESE
The 2012 St. Mary Medical Mission will take place March 3 thru March 10.
Dr. Richard J. Garvey, a parishioner and a member of our Twinning Committee will once again be the Medical Director and he will also lead the surgical component of the mission. We wil have three MD's providing adult care, three pediatricians, and four other medical professionals who will operate our Pharmacy and provide Tetanus Immunizations.
Dr. Garvey met with Haitian Health Officials on February 7 and arranged for the immunizations to be made available to our team, A MOST RARE AND SIGNIFICANT ACCOMPLISHMENT.
Additionally, we will have an Eye Glass Station where we hope to distribute 1,250 pairs of reading glasses. Ten of the fourteen team members are paying for their own airfare so that we will have additional monies to purchase various meds, vitamins, and supplies.
This is a most impressive undertaking of which St. Mary can be very proud of. People of love and faith helping people of love, faith, and hope.
Below is an article that our Chair Mike Mercurio has submitted for the bulletin.
--------------------------------------
ST. MARY RETURNS TO STE. THERESE
The 2012 St. Mary Medical Mission will take place March 3 thru March 10.
Dr. Richard J. Garvey, a parishioner and a member of our Twinning Committee will once again be the Medical Director and he will also lead the surgical component of the mission. We wil have three MD's providing adult care, three pediatricians, and four other medical professionals who will operate our Pharmacy and provide Tetanus Immunizations.
Dr. Garvey met with Haitian Health Officials on February 7 and arranged for the immunizations to be made available to our team, A MOST RARE AND SIGNIFICANT ACCOMPLISHMENT.
Additionally, we will have an Eye Glass Station where we hope to distribute 1,250 pairs of reading glasses. Ten of the fourteen team members are paying for their own airfare so that we will have additional monies to purchase various meds, vitamins, and supplies.
This is a most impressive undertaking of which St. Mary can be very proud of. People of love and faith helping people of love, faith, and hope.
Thursday, January 26, 2012
It's Twinning Season - The Blog is Out of Hibernation!
Greetings!
Wake Up!!!
The Twinning Blog has been updated with a couple of updated posts from our Chair Mike Mercurio. Both are in the form of letters that he sent out to our always faithful and generous supporters! It has been awhile since the Blog was updated. But the Twinning Committee is working as hard as ever and expect regular updates in the foreseeable future!
Please see the two posts below for the update...
Medical Mission
We are proud to announce that our second Medical Mission will take place in March. The Twinning Committee Medical Team leaves March 3 and returns March 10! Stay Tuned.
New Pastor at St. Mary
The Twinning Committee welcomes Father Aidan Donahue the new Pastor at St. Mary!
------
Andy Ancel
Twinning Committee Blog Ed
Wake Up!!!
The Twinning Blog has been updated with a couple of updated posts from our Chair Mike Mercurio. Both are in the form of letters that he sent out to our always faithful and generous supporters! It has been awhile since the Blog was updated. But the Twinning Committee is working as hard as ever and expect regular updates in the foreseeable future!
Please see the two posts below for the update...
Medical Mission
We are proud to announce that our second Medical Mission will take place in March. The Twinning Committee Medical Team leaves March 3 and returns March 10! Stay Tuned.
New Pastor at St. Mary
The Twinning Committee welcomes Father Aidan Donahue the new Pastor at St. Mary!
------
Andy Ancel
Twinning Committee Blog Ed
Twinning Update via our Thank You Letter!
On behalf of Father Cronin and the St. Mary Twinning Committee, I would like to thank you for your 2011 generous $50 donation which will educate, for one year, one student at our sister parish and also help purchase much needed school supplies for Ste. Therese.
I am pleased to provide you with the following information:
Since “Twinning” with Ste. Therese in Marbial, Haiti, five years ago, St. Mary has supported our sister parish with $31,030 of financial assistance intended solely to help educate the nearly six hundred K through 8 and high school students at St. Therese.
In early March 2010, lead by Dr. Richard J. Garvey, St. Mary sent a sixteen person medical team to Ste. Therese for eight days, which proved to be extraordinarily productive and gratifying. The team provided superior, sympathetic, and sensitive medical care to over fifteen hundred individuals and performed twenty-three successful surgeries.
Each year, St. Mary sends to Ste. Therese items to improve both the physical and emotional well-being of our Haitian brothers and sisters. These products include over-the-counter medications, first aid kits, medical and school supplies, personal hygiene items, eye glasses, various tools, Treadle Sewing Machines, and recreational items such as soccer balls, which are all very much needed, most welcomed, and greatly appreciated. Over the years our committee has developed an expression: “Everyone in Haiti needs everything.”
During January 2011, we supplied 225 water purification systems to Ste. Therese, which will provide clean water for one year for approximately 1,800 individuals. These clean water systems will not only save lives, but will substantially improve the general health of the community. Earlier last month we supplied an additional 400 systems which will provide clean drinking water for approximately 3,400 more individuals.
Our exceptional response to the needs of our sister parish are possible only because of the remarkable generosity of the parishioners of St. Mary, their families and friends, as well as other supporters.
As always, I ask that you keep our Haitian brothers and sisters in your prayers; let us all remember: “Our love must not be a thing of words and fine talk. It must be a thing of action and sincerity.” (1 John 3:18)
With warmest regards,
Mike Mercurio
Twinning Chair
I am pleased to provide you with the following information:
Since “Twinning” with Ste. Therese in Marbial, Haiti, five years ago, St. Mary has supported our sister parish with $31,030 of financial assistance intended solely to help educate the nearly six hundred K through 8 and high school students at St. Therese.
In early March 2010, lead by Dr. Richard J. Garvey, St. Mary sent a sixteen person medical team to Ste. Therese for eight days, which proved to be extraordinarily productive and gratifying. The team provided superior, sympathetic, and sensitive medical care to over fifteen hundred individuals and performed twenty-three successful surgeries.
Each year, St. Mary sends to Ste. Therese items to improve both the physical and emotional well-being of our Haitian brothers and sisters. These products include over-the-counter medications, first aid kits, medical and school supplies, personal hygiene items, eye glasses, various tools, Treadle Sewing Machines, and recreational items such as soccer balls, which are all very much needed, most welcomed, and greatly appreciated. Over the years our committee has developed an expression: “Everyone in Haiti needs everything.”
During January 2011, we supplied 225 water purification systems to Ste. Therese, which will provide clean water for one year for approximately 1,800 individuals. These clean water systems will not only save lives, but will substantially improve the general health of the community. Earlier last month we supplied an additional 400 systems which will provide clean drinking water for approximately 3,400 more individuals.
Our exceptional response to the needs of our sister parish are possible only because of the remarkable generosity of the parishioners of St. Mary, their families and friends, as well as other supporters.
As always, I ask that you keep our Haitian brothers and sisters in your prayers; let us all remember: “Our love must not be a thing of words and fine talk. It must be a thing of action and sincerity.” (1 John 3:18)
With warmest regards,
Mike Mercurio
Twinning Chair
Christmas Giving Tree Thank You - Mike Mercurio, Chair
HAITI UPDATE - EDUCATION
On behalf of Father Cronin and the "Twinning Committee" a heartfelt thank you to everyone who made a Haiti Education donation to the 2011 Giving Tree.
Total contributions amounted to a record $6,189 and the children of St. Mary School contributed an additional $553.02. During this month we will send to Father Bertrand, at Ste. Therese, a check in the amount of $7,727.02 which includes $985 collected throughout the year in response to Haiti Education bulletin appeals.
This financial assistance is intended solely to help educate the nearly 600 K thru 8 and high school students of Ste. Therese. It is absolutely remarkable how generous our parishioners have been over the past five years in supporting the various significant needs of our sister parish.
Please always remember; "Our love must not be a thing of words and fine talk. It must be a thing of action and sincerity." (1 John 3:18)
Mike Mercurio
Twinning Chair
On behalf of Father Cronin and the "Twinning Committee" a heartfelt thank you to everyone who made a Haiti Education donation to the 2011 Giving Tree.
Total contributions amounted to a record $6,189 and the children of St. Mary School contributed an additional $553.02. During this month we will send to Father Bertrand, at Ste. Therese, a check in the amount of $7,727.02 which includes $985 collected throughout the year in response to Haiti Education bulletin appeals.
This financial assistance is intended solely to help educate the nearly 600 K thru 8 and high school students of Ste. Therese. It is absolutely remarkable how generous our parishioners have been over the past five years in supporting the various significant needs of our sister parish.
Please always remember; "Our love must not be a thing of words and fine talk. It must be a thing of action and sincerity." (1 John 3:18)
Mike Mercurio
Twinning Chair
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)